Alteration
by began-to-climb
Summary: HAIRSPRAY 2007. Link is worried sick about Tracy after seeing the news of the march. At her home, among her parents, he fidgets, mulling in the confession that he loves her. Then she's in his arms, uable to be mad at him. LinkTracy


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Name: Alteration

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Rating: PG

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Summary: Link is worried sick about Tracy after seeing the news and realizing that she's wanted. At her home, conjoined with her pleasantry eccentric parents, he fidgets, mulling in the confession that he loves her. He wants nothing more for her to walk through that door and keep her safely in his arms. Then again, she wouldn't be Tracy if she followed rules.

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Pairing: Link/Tracy (obviously), hints of Seaweed/Penny

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Disclaimer: I don't own any characters in here; they all belong to John Waters.

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Authors Note: I saw the movie on opening day and fell completely head over heels, not even kidding. I think I have found the play that I'm seeing when I got to New York over Christmas. Anyway, this is a scene that I thought was missing from the movie.

Hey Princess Narnia, hope you found this.

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The smile slipped off her face in a split second. Her hand braced on the doorframe, fingers digging into the peeling wood, she was oblivious to her frantic friends rear-ending her, shocked by her sudden halt. They crashed into her, bumping her forward an inch then bounced back into one another like a yo-yo.

Tracy Turnblad felt like the air in her lungs had been stolen. Stolen by _him_. By Link Larkin. By the darkly handsome boy that always made her heart flutter and stomach flip, who made her swoon at the sound of his silky voice. By the same boy who was hunched over the table in her kitchen, arms tucked into his body, staring hard at the scratches in the wood. The trademark black curl that protruded his forehead dangled limply in the air.

Her mouth open and shut, struggling for the very simple question on the tip of her tongue. Yet, as she stumbled over herself, dissolving into a puddle of goo, one thought kept ping ponging in and out of her mind.

He, Link Larkin, was in her, Tracy Turnblad's, kitchen.

And what was better was that her parents looked so utterly at home with him there, as if they weren't harboring the teen heartthrob. Why was he in her kitchen? It couldn't be coincidence that he decided to show up right after the march, which he selfishly excused himself from. Why was he in her house? She took a cautious step forward, glancing over her shoulder to find that her two friends had disappeared, their convivial voices drifting from her bedroom, and licked her lips.

"Why are you here?" she blurted suddenly, loudly.

It took Link a minute too long to realize she'd spoken. His head slowly rose from it's statuesque state, eyes rising first, and he swiped at his cheeks desperately, trying his hardest to muster his urbane smile. Tracy's eyes widened in surprise, eyebrows shooting up; his eyes were red and blood-shot, as if he hadn't slept, and his forehead was creased with concern. It was nearly two in the morning; had he been here this whole time? Her heart fluttered at the thought, butterflies fluttering in frenzy, but she instantly reprimanded the reactions.

She was supposed to be mad at him, right?

His palm wiped his eyes, a bright smile plastering on his chiseled features. He stood, dropping his hand to his side, and stopped in front of her, looking at her expectantly. What he expected, she didn't know. But as she studied his lagoon-blue eyes, she saw it as clear as day. Breaking the contact with him, she glanced to her mother washing dishes at the counter and found her watching them.

"Mama, can we have a minute, please?" she asked sweetly.

Edna Turnblad cast a last look at Link, too engrossed in Tracy to notice anything else, and departed from the room, shuffling into the living room where Wilbur had the news on again. Tracy snatched Link by the elbow and led him around the corner into the hallway. He still hadn't said anything, which was abnormal. She had always thought he was a social king.

"You didn't answer my question." she mentioned sternly, hooking her hands on her hips. "Why are you here, in my house?"

He gave a half-shrug, lips twisting to the side, and trained on the wall behind her. "I was worried about you. I saw the news and got scared. No one knew where you were and I thought you'd be here, but you weren't and…"

He swallowed the remainder of the confession, hoping that she'd be able to piece together the ending. She nodded. It was the sweetest thing she'd ever heard and what she never imagined would ever happen. Who ever would have thought that Link Larkin would be in her home, waiting on her because he was worried about her? It almost made her forgive him for bailing. Almost.

She didn't say anything because she didn't really know how to respond to that. There really wasn't anything to say. Then he was staring at his shoes sheepishly and trying to brush past her, mumbling, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come here. I, I'll go."

"Hey." She caught his hand before he could leave the hall, drawing him back to her. He refused to meet her eyes. "Look at me. I hate that you were scared, but I love that you came here for me."

She tilted her head to the side, gazing sadly up at him. His expression read himself better than she ever could. He really had been scared that something had happened to her. This definitely wasn't the Link she knew and loved. This wasn't the boy that she watched strut and sing his heart out every afternoon. This wasn't the boy that made every girl watching fall under his spell. This was someone entirely different. And she'd commenced this alteration. In a way, this was only making her fall more in love with him.

Smiling to herself, she gingerly cupped his face and drew his eyes to hers. "I'm okay. I'm all right."

He nodded. "Yeah…" His eyes flickered away from him and for a minute she thought she lost him again. "I should've been there for you. I should've been with you. I shouldn't have left you alone."

She was in his arms before she could stop herself. Her arms around his neck, his encasing her waist, she held him tightly to her, secretly loving the feel of his wet cheeks on her neck. He continued to ramble against her skin, eyes closed, lips moving in incoherent words. She shushed him, soothingly stoking the back of his head, her fingers running through his stiff coif, but he was unfazed by her condolence.

She pushed back and forced him to look at her. "There was nothing you could have done. If you were with me you would've gotten into more trouble. You were right. You can't risk your break tomorrow. You need it."

He growled deep in his throat, annoyance tracing his face. "I don't care about that stupid thing tomorrow. Screw it. Screw Amber, and Mrs. von Tussle, screw it all. That's not important anymore. You are."

Tracy blinked again and again, as if his words were going to evaporate and not exist any minute. "Link, what do you mean?"

"I mean that everything in my life up to meeting you was boring and exactly what everyone wanted from me. It was the same and I just being obedient. Then you come into my life and everything is shaken down. Everything changes and I want you to know that I'm with you, that I'm on your side. It's time for change and I'm ready to plunge with you. What I said earlier, all of it, was idiotic and I was a jerk and I'm sorry. I hurt someone that I love and I hate myself for it."

He smirked as her face lit up. Gazing intensely at her, blue eyes smoldering, he pressed his forehead to hers. "I overheard your plan. I'm in. All the way."

Then her smile disappeared again. She shook her head, deflated hair shaking in different directions. "No, I won't let you do that."

"Tracy—"

"This is your big break, Link. I won't let you sacrifice for me. I can't ask you to do that. No."

He tightened his hold on her, pining her against him. "Tracy, I need to. I love you. Let me be a part of what you're doing."

"You love me?" Tracy inquired dreamily, biting her lip to contain her smile.

He rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "Yeah. Don't look too surprised. You're sort of hard to resist, doll."

"You're not too bad yourself." She teased, playfully pushing him.

He winked at her, his lips warping into his signature saucy smirk. "Baby, I'm all bad."

Her hands slid up his arms. "Corny would kill you for stealing his corniness."

Link smirked, leaning in so there was barely breathing room between them. "Shut up and let me kiss you."

Tracy melted in his arms, all thought of the previous discussion and even why she'd been upset with him wasting away as he closed the short distance between them, capturing her lips in a delicate kiss. The kindness of the embrace caught her off guard; she assumed he would've dove in without a preceding thought. Yet, as his lips moved against hers, he was hesitant while waiting for her response. She responded swiftly, kissing him back, tugging at his bottom lip. She felt him smile.

The kiss was broken by the chorus of oohs and awes in the distance. Both teenagers glanced down the hall, hiding their abashed faces, and saw Penny Pingleton and Seaweed Stubbs at Tracy's bedroom door, towering over one another as they inspected the show. Tracy giggled, praying for the heat in her crimson cheeks to dissipate, and buried her face in Link's arm, which shook with his laughter. His hand traced circles on her back, fingers light on her skin, unaware that he was tickling the strings of her heart with the touch.

"Miss Tracy, are we ready to go?" Seaweed wondered aloud, taking Penny's hand and sauntering down the hall to the new couple.

Tracy nodded, still incapable to recovering from not only kissing her crush but being caught kissing said crush. At least her mother hadn't found them; she'd never hear the end of it. She gratefully took the bag from Penny and set it by the front door, replacing her hand on Link's arm.

Link stared down at her, eyes overcast with renowned concern and doubt. "Go? Where are you going?"

"I can't stay here, Link. The police are going to be here any minute. I'm going to stay at Seaweed's place with him and Penny, just for the night." she explained calmly, tearing herself from his arms. She opened the door, taking the bag in one hand, and followed Seaweed and Penny out. By last thought, she stuck her head back through the threshold. "Bye Mama! Bye Papa! I'll see you both tomorrow!"

He followed hot on her heels when she left the house, hastening down the stairs to catch her two friends. "Let me come with you. Let me stay with you. I can help." he suggested desperately.

Once on the damp sidewalk, the night cloaking the fugitives and the consequences of their impending actions, Tracy turned on Link. "You can't. You have to be there in the morning. We have our plan, you need to follow yours—"

"What if mine's changed?" he said.

"It can't." She sidled up to him. "Look, I'll see you tomorrow at the show. I'll be safe, I promise."

She placed a quick kiss on his cheek, forcing herself to part from him. If she didn't turn away now, she knew she wouldn't be able to and, for everyone, she couldn't get absorbed in her own romantic delusions right now. It wasn't the time for that, no matter how intoxicating Link was in his new skin.

Her hand slipped from his arm. But he snatched her hand and pulled her back, clasping his hand on her neck and yanking her into a firm kiss. He kissed her fervidly, a slow drawl that would undoubtedly leave her with his taste the rest of the night. When they drew back, both were out of breath, chests heaving, too aroused to disentangle themselves from each other.

"See ya, darlin." he breathed, swallowing.

Tracy could only nod. She steadied herself, slipping him an animated blush, and joined Penny and Seaweed. She glanced back at him one last time, spying him standing under the streetlight, hands bulged in his pockets, watching her with a cocked head as she walked away.

He watched her go. All the feelings of doubt and worry and gaiety that he'd been wrestling with since first stepping foot into her home were washed away. He knew in his heart that this was something Tracy had to do on her own. She had to accomplish this to accomplish anything else life was about to throw at her. And he would be there, holding her hand, supporting her causes.

He had never expected to fall for her, but it was her passion for music and for life that had drawn her to him, had besotted him. In this time of change, passion was key. And he would be with her to keep that passion lit.

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A/N: I'm so sorry if I wrote Tracy and Link (especially Link) out of character. I only saw the movie, so I'm not an expert. But I'd love for anyone and everyone to review. I'll give you Zac Efron shaped cookies.


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